Reduction in the Prevalence of Thrombotic Events in Sickle Cell Disease after Allogeneic Hematopoietic Transplantation

Thrombosis is a recognized complication in sickle cell disease (SCD). Allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (allo-HCT) remains the sole curative option for patients with severe SCD phenotypes. Data describing the effects of allo-HCT on recurrent thrombotic events (venous and arterial events) are limited, however. We evaluated 31 patients with SCD who underwent allo-HCT with a median follow-up of 34.5 months (range, 13 to 115) post transplantation. No patient continued anticoagulation or antiplatelet therapy after allo-HCT. There was an absolute difference of 32% (95% confidence interval [CI], 12.3% to 32.2%; P = .002) in the prevalence of venous thromboembolic (VTE) events before and after allo-HSCT. In addition, there was an absolute difference of 38.5% (95% CI, 10.63 to 45.96; P = .006) in the number of ischemic cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs) occurring before and after allo-HSCT. Patients with severe SCD who undergo allo-HCT are less likely to develop recurrent thrombotic events compared with a control cohort of patients matched for age and genotype (odds ratio, 0.22; 95% CI, 0.058 to 0.83; P = .025). Following curative therapy with allo-HCT, there is a reduction in recurrent arterial and venous thrombosis in patients with severe SCD phenotypes. (C) 2022 The American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This study evaluated the occurrence of recurrent thrombotic events in patients with sickle cell disease (SCD) who underwent allo-HCT. The results showed a significant reduction in the prevalence of venous thromboembolic (VTE) events and ischemic cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs) after allo-HCT. Compared to the control group, patients who underwent allo-HCT were less likely to develop recurrent thrombotic events.